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This was a follow up to a week in New Zealand with my two sons (16 and 13) and my wife. For this hunt my wife remained at the hotel in Cairns while the boys and I flew to Gove (Nhulunbuy), a mining town on the extreme northern tip of Australia in the Northern Territory. We stayed overnight at the Walkabout Lodge in Gove and were picked up the following morning and driven about three hours down a lonely red dirt road through a verdant green eucalyptus forest. The camp is rustic but comfortable. Several new tents are set up on the site. Ours was a brand new roomy two room tent with three cots. We were very comfortable. The camp features permanent flush toilets and two permanent showers, along with a screened dining gazebo. Meals were prepared by Meghan, the camp cook, who hails from Kansas City, Missouri and did a great job keeping my two boys happy with hamburgers, pizza, spaghetti and other standards that they liked. There is a large crocodile in the lagoon next to the camp named "Conrad" that the boys kept looking for. We didn't see "Conrad" but we did see his girlfriend, a 12 foot long female that would occasionally patrol the lagoon. Temperatures were moderate - warm in the afternoon but very pleasant in the evening and overnight. The place is buggy - bring good mosquito repellent and use it. We saw no snakes - the poisonous cane toad has seen to that, unfortunately. Other than the buffalo and many different kinds of bird there isn't a lot of other "megafauna" to see. We did get a fleeting glimpse of a wallaby one day and we saw dingoes a few times. We also heard dingoes howling several nights, which was pretty cool. Hunting is done by driving and spotting. Most of the driving was on relatively well-maintained roads, though some of it involved "bush bashing" along watercourses. We spotted buffalo every day, and "shootable" buffalo most days. There is a large floodplain where many buffalo congregate every day. Peter has positioned trucks on the opposite side of the lagoon and a large lake near camp. On a few occasions we took boats across the water and used the vehicles on the other side. We only walked when we had spotted an animal worth stalking. Stalks ranged from relatively easy - get the wind right and find a suitable rest (Justin's buffalo) to relatively lengthy - walk, run, crawl through the forest for an hour (Nick's buffalo) and in between (my buffalo, which we stalked for about 30 minutes, many of which were spent just waiting for him to turn). We were provided with an old but still very serviceable BRNO in .375 H&H. The boys had practiced with my .375 before we left and shot this one well. Shooting was done by using trees as a vertical rest. Shots were not long - all three of ours were under 100 yards - due to the thickness of the forest. Nick's buffalo was shot just a little high but on the shoulder. It ran but laid down in some brush. Nick put another shot between the shoulder blades to finish it. Justin's buffalo was shot perfectly on the shoulder, breaking the onside leg. This buffalo was running with another bull however, and the second bull kept the one Justin shot on its feet and moving. Justin gave it a raking shot that hit just in front of the hip and angled forward through the body. After the bulls stopped and turned, he hit it perfectly on the other shoulder, dropping it. But it still took another couple of hits before it was finished. My bull was shot square in the chest in a frontal presentation while giving me that typical nose up attitude while trying to figure out what I was. It ran about 50 yards and crashed down, bellowing loudly. No further shooting required. All three trophies are very good. Because we were hunting for 3 buffalo over 6 days, we did not have the luxury of being as selective as other hunters may have. Ours all measured between 97 and 98 inches total. My understanding is that given time a 100 inch plus bull is very realistic expectation. Peter Harding worked very hard for us. He is a very professional guide. As the son of a taxidermist our trophy care was very, very good. Peter is quick but very accurate with the skinning knife. We were very pleased with this trip. It is a long way to go but unlike anyplace else. The hunting is not strenuous, the game is terrific, and the scenery is interesting and different. Australia is an easy country to get along in - people are friendly and it is similar to home while still feeling exotic. I booked this hunt through my good friend Dan Goodenow at Jim Shockey's Hunting Adventures. Dan has always provided sound advice and recommendations on places to go and people to hunt with and I trust him when it comes to spending tens of thousands of dollars to travel halfway around the world and shoot something.

Subscriber-Written Trip Report On Hunt Australia Hunts

Below is one sample of such a Report which is made available to you FREE of Charge.